It's All Aero

I went to Landry's Bicycles in Boston a few days ago where I had the opportunity to listen to Mark Cote from Specialized - he's the aero guru for Specialized and has been quoted all over the place following Crowie's win in Kona.  It was a fun talk; he may not be a marketing guy, but he's so excited about his products, he draws you in and you want to cash-in the trust fund to pick up a Shiv (Or the McLaren Venge - a cool $18k, if you have it burning a hole in your tux pocket).  I also had the chance to chat with him afterwards; he's very personable and his enthusiasm for all things aero, triathlon and biking come through.  Some things I learned:

--  The integrated water bottle on the Shiv is pretty darn cool.

--  If you're not using a water bottle cage, remove it - it's more aero without the empty cage.

--  The biggest thing you can do to improve your performance is a good bike fitting.

--  Aero position is only as good as long as you can hold it (see above).

If you have the chance to see him at your LBS, make it a priority!